Skip to content
    / calculator

    Liquidation calculator.

    Solve the exact price your leveraged long or short force-closes. Cross + isolated, every major exchange MMR tier.

    Liquidation Price Calculator

    Estimate where your position gets liquidated

    Leverage10x
    Maintenance Margin Rate0.5%

    Est. Liquidation Price

    $58,825.00

    Moderate Risk

    Distance: 9.50% ($6,175)

    LiquidationEntry
    Entry
    Liq.
    $58,825$65,000
    Position Size
    $10,000
    Quantity
    0.153846
    Initial Margin
    $1,000
    Maintenance Margin
    $50

    Maximum Loss

    If liquidated, you could lose up to $1,000 (your entire margin (usd)).

    This calculator provides estimates based on simplified formulas. Actual liquidation prices may differ due to funding rates, trading fees, insurance fund contributions, and exchange-specific margin rules. Always check your exchange's documentation for exact calculations.

    Profit / Loss Calculator

    Calculate your potential profit or loss on a trade

    Leverage10x
    Trading Fee (per side)0.04%

    Net Profit / Loss

    +$760.92

    +76.09% ROI
    Investment (USD)Exit Value
    $1,000$1,760.92
    Position Size
    $10,000
    Quantity
    0.153846
    PnL Before Fees
    +$769.23
    Total Fees
    -$8.31
    Price Change
    +7.69%
    Leveraged Return
    +76.09%

    This calculator shows estimated results. Actual PnL may vary due to slippage, funding rates, partial fills, and exchange-specific fee tiers. Fee presets reflect typical maker/taker rates on major exchanges.

    Results are estimates only and should not be relied upon for financial decisions.

    What Is a Liquidation Price?

    Liquidation is the moment the exchange force-closes your trade — and you lose the deposit you put up for it. Here is why it happens: with leverage, most of your position is the exchange's money, not yours, and it will not let your losses run past your small deposit. The instant the price moves far enough that those losses would swallow your deposit, it automatically sells you out to get its loan back. The exact price where that trips is your liquidation price.

    Which side it sits on depends on your trade: for a long it is below your entry; for a short it is above. And the more leverage you use, the closer it creeps to your entry. Go long with $100 at 10x and a roughly 10% drop wipes you out; at 50x it is about 2%; at 100x about 1%. The rule of thumb: double the leverage, roughly halve the move that liquidates you — and crypto can travel that far in minutes.

    So the single most important habit in leveraged trading is to know your liquidation price before you enter — and to set a stop-loss comfortably on the safe side of it, so you exit on your own terms for a smaller, controlled loss instead of letting the exchange close you at the worst possible moment. That is exactly what the calculator above is for.

    How Liquidation Works: Step by Step

    Liquidation doesn't happen instantly — it follows a predictable sequence that every leveraged trader should understand:

    1. You Open a Leveraged Position

    You deposit margin (collateral) and borrow funds to control a larger position. With $400 margin and 25x leverage, you control $10,000 worth of crypto.

    2. The Market Moves Against You

    If you're long and the price drops, or short and the price rises, your unrealized losses grow. These losses are deducted from your margin balance in real-time.

    3. Margin Call Warning

    When your remaining margin approaches the maintenance margin requirement (typically 0.4%–1% of position size), the exchange issues a margin call. This is your last chance to add more collateral or reduce the position.

    4. Forced Liquidation

    If your margin falls below the maintenance requirement and you haven't acted, the exchange's liquidation engine automatically closes your position at the best available market price. You lose your margin.

    5. Insurance Fund or Socialized Losses

    If the liquidation price is worse than your bankruptcy price (the price at which your margin is exactly zero), the exchange's insurance fund covers the difference. In extreme cases, losses may be socialized across profitable traders.

    How to Calculate Profit and Loss

    The profit or loss on a leveraged trade depends on the price difference between your entry and exit, multiplied by your position size. The PnL calculator factors in trading fees on both sides of the trade to give you a realistic net result.

    Long PnL: Quantity × (Exit Price − Entry Price) − Fees

    Short PnL: Quantity × (Entry Price − Exit Price) − Fees

    ROI: Net PnL ÷ Investment × 100%

    With leverage, your ROI is amplified. A 1% price move with 5x leverage results in a 5% return on your investment (before fees). At 20x, that same 1% move becomes a 20% swing. This works in both directions — losses are equally amplified. A common mistake among beginners is focusing only on the upside amplification while underestimating the speed at which losses accumulate.

    How Is Liquidation Price Calculated?

    The simplified formula for estimating liquidation price depends on your position direction:

    Long: Liq. Price = Entry × (1 − (Margin − Maintenance) ÷ Position Size)

    Short: Liq. Price = Entry × (1 + (Margin − Maintenance) ÷ Position Size)

    Where Maintenance is the maintenance margin requirement (typically 0.4%–1% of position size depending on the exchange and tier). This calculator uses a configurable maintenance margin rate so you can match your exchange's specific requirements.

    Worked Example: Long Position

    Suppose you open a long BTC position at $90,000 with $1,000 margin and 20x leverage. Your position size is $20,000 (≈0.222 BTC). With a 0.5% maintenance margin rate:

    Maintenance margin = $20,000 × 0.5% = $100

    Available margin before liquidation = $1,000 − $100 = $900

    Price drop to liquidation = $900 ÷ 0.222 BTC ≈ $4,054

    Liquidation price ≈ $90,000 − $4,054 = $85,946

    • That's only a 4.5% price drop to wipe out your position

    Worked Example: Short Position

    Now imagine shorting ETH at $3,500 with $500 margin and 10x leverage. Position size is $5,000 (≈1.43 ETH). With 0.5% maintenance margin:

    Maintenance margin = $5,000 × 0.5% = $25

    Available margin = $500 − $25 = $475

    Price rise to liquidation = $475 ÷ 1.43 ETH ≈ $332

    Liquidation price ≈ $3,500 + $332 = $3,832

    • That's a 9.5% price increase — more room than the long example because leverage is lower

    Isolated vs Cross Margin

    The margin mode you choose fundamentally changes your risk profile. Understanding the difference is essential before placing any leveraged trade.

    Isolated Margin

    Dedicates a fixed amount of collateral to a single position. If liquidated, only the isolated margin is lost — your remaining wallet balance is unaffected.

    • Risk is capped per position
    • Easier to manage multiple positions
    • Liquidation price is closer to entry
    • Best for beginners and single-trade risk control

    Cross Margin

    Uses your entire available wallet balance as collateral. Gives positions more room before liquidation, but a single bad trade can drain your account.

    • More breathing room per position
    • Profits from one position can offset losses on another
    • Risk of total account wipeout
    • Best for experienced traders with hedged portfolios

    Leverage and Liquidation Distance

    The relationship between leverage and liquidation distance is inverse and exponential in its impact. Here's how much the price needs to move against you before liquidation at different leverage levels (excluding maintenance margin for simplicity):

    LeveragePrice Move to LiquidationRisk LevelContext
    2x50%LowEquivalent to buying stock on margin
    3x33%Low–MediumStandard for conservative futures trading
    5x20%MediumCommon for swing traders
    10x10%HighBTC can move 10% in a single day
    20x5%Very HighCommon intraday BTC volatility
    50x2%ExtremeGets liquidated by normal market noise
    100x1%MaximumA single large order can trigger this
    125x0.8%GamblingVirtually guaranteed liquidation

    Bitcoin's average daily volatility in recent years has been approximately 3–5%. This means any position with leverage above 20x has a meaningful probability of being liquidated within a single trading day, even if your directional thesis is ultimately correct.

    Common Liquidation Mistakes

    Most liquidations are preventable. Here are the most common mistakes that lead traders to lose their margin:

    Using Max Leverage "Because It's Available"

    Exchanges offer up to 125x leverage, but this doesn't mean you should use it. Most professionals use 2x–5x. Higher leverage is a marketing feature, not a trading strategy.

    No Stop-Loss Order

    Without a stop-loss, you're relying on manually watching the market 24/7. Crypto markets move while you sleep. Always set a stop-loss below your liquidation price.

    Ignoring Funding Rates

    In perpetual futures, funding rates are charged every 8 hours. During strong trends, rates can reach 0.1%+ per cycle. Over a week, this can silently drain 2–5% of your margin, moving your effective liquidation price closer.

    Adding Margin to a Losing Position

    Adding margin to avoid liquidation is throwing good money after bad. If your analysis was wrong, accept the loss. Adding margin only delays liquidation and increases total potential losses.

    Trading During High-Impact Events

    FOMC announcements, CPI data releases, and unexpected regulatory news can cause 5–15% moves within minutes. Over $1 billion in liquidations occurred across exchanges during the August 2024 crash in under 24 hours.

    Tips to Avoid Liquidation

    Use Lower Leverage (2x–5x)

    Lower leverage gives significantly more breathing room. A 5x long on BTC can survive a 20% drawdown, while a 50x position gets liquidated by a 2% dip.

    Set Stop-Loss Orders

    Always place a stop-loss at least 20–30% above your liquidation price. This ensures your position closes with a controlled loss rather than a total margin wipeout.

    Monitor Funding Rates

    When funding is extremely high (above 0.05%), consider taking the other side of the trade or waiting for rates to normalize before entering.

    Size Positions Using the 1% Rule

    Never risk more than 1–2% of your total portfolio on a single leveraged trade. position size calculator to determine the right trade size.

    Use Isolated Margin Mode

    Isolated margin limits your loss to the margin allocated to that specific position. Until you're experienced with managing correlated positions, stick with isolated mode.

    Liquidation on Different Exchanges

    Each exchange handles liquidation slightly differently. Key differences include maintenance margin rates, insurance funds, and auto-deleverage (ADL) mechanisms:

    FeatureBinanceBybit
    Max Leverage125x100x
    Maintenance MarginTiered (0.4%–5%)Tiered (0.5%–5%)
    Insurance Fund>$1B~$400M
    ADL SystemYesYes
    Partial LiquidationYesYes

    Most major exchanges now use partial liquidation — they reduce your position size incrementally rather than closing everything at once. This helps limit slippage and gives you a chance to manage the remaining position. However, partial liquidation still results in realized losses and should not be relied upon as a risk management strategy.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What happens when you get liquidated?+
    When your position is liquidated, the exchange force-closes it at the liquidation price to prevent your collateral from going negative. You lose your initial margin (or close to all of it after fees + slippage). On Binance and Bybit, a liquidation fee (typically 0.5–1.0% of position size) is deducted; the remainder, if any, is returned to you. ADL only triggers in extreme cascades when the insurance fund can't cover losses.
    Can you get liquidated on spot trading?+
    Only when using leverage (margin or futures). Spot positions can drop to zero but cannot be liquidated — you simply hold the depreciated asset. Margin and perpetual futures positions get liquidated when the price moves against you by enough to exhaust your maintenance margin (typically 0.5–4% of position size depending on leverage and exchange tier).
    What is the difference between liquidation price and bankruptcy price?+
    Initial margin = the collateral you deposit to open a leveraged position (e.g. 10% for 10× leverage on a $10,000 trade = $1,000). Maintenance margin = the minimum collateral the exchange requires you to keep, typically 0.5–4% of position size. Once your equity drops to maintenance margin, you're liquidated. Initial margin is what you put up; maintenance margin is the floor that triggers force-close.
    Do I lose everything when I get liquidated?+
    Usually yes — when liquidated, your initial margin is consumed by the loss + liquidation fee + any slippage. Some exchanges (Binance, Bybit) refund a small remainder if liquidation completed at a price better than the bankruptcy price. You don't owe additional money beyond your collateral on most retail accounts; isolated margin caps loss to that position's collateral, while cross-margin can drain your full account.
    How can I calculate my liquidation price before opening a trade?+
    Liquidation price ≈ entry × (1 ± maintenance_margin/leverage). For a long with 10× leverage and 0.5% maintenance margin entered at $50,000, you're liquidated at roughly $50,000 × (1 - (1 - 0.005)/10) ≈ $45,025. This calculator shows the math step-by-step plus your worst-case loss; most exchanges (Binance, Bybit, Kraken) display this directly on the order ticket.
    Does funding rate affect liquidation price?+
    Yes — perpetual funding payments reduce your collateral and effectively pull liquidation closer over time. A long paying 0.01% every 8 hours bleeds 0.03% of position size per day from margin; on heavily leveraged positions that can move liquidation $50–$200 closer per week even without any price movement.
    What is auto-deleverage (ADL)?+
    Auto-deleveraging (ADL) triggers when an exchange's insurance fund can't cover a liquidation cascade. The exchange force-closes the most-profitable, highest-leverage opposing positions to absorb the loss. Binance and Bybit publish ADL queues so you can see where your position sits in line before placing the trade.
    Is higher leverage always worse?+
    No. Higher leverage tightens your liquidation buffer linearly while only amplifying gains in your favour. At 10× a 9% adverse move liquidates; at 100× a 0.9% move does the same. Statistically, retail traders using >25× are profitable on far fewer trades than 5–10× users — the higher number just compresses time-to-ruin.

    Trade with Confidence on Binance

    Binance offers advanced risk management tools, multiple margin modes, and the deepest liquidity to help you trade responsibly.

    Open Free Binance Account

    Ad · Digital asset prices are subject to high market risk and price volatility. Don't invest unless you're prepared to lose all the money you invest. Terms & risk disclosure

    This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you sign up, at no extra cost to you.

    Derivatives & Leveraged Products — Important Risk Warning

    Derivatives are complex financial instruments that carry a high risk of rapid capital loss. Leveraged trading (futures, perpetual contracts, margin trading, options) can result in losses that exceed your initial investment. The majority of retail investor accounts lose money when trading derivatives.

    You should carefully consider whether you understand how derivatives work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. This content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice, investment advice, or a recommendation to trade derivatives.

    In the European Union, crypto derivatives are classified as financial instruments under MiFID II. Only platforms with appropriate MiFID II authorization may offer these products to EU residents. Regulatory treatment varies by jurisdiction — verify the legal status of derivatives trading in your country before participating.

    Related Tools & Guides